Your Newsletter Launch Plan
Build your complete newsletter launch plan — combining platform setup, content strategy, growth tactics, and monetization into an actionable 90-day system.
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Your 90-Day Launch System
🔄 Quick Recall: Over the past seven lessons, you’ve learned platform selection (lesson 2), content creation with AI (lesson 3), subject line optimization (lesson 4), subscriber growth (lesson 5), monetization (lesson 6), and analytics and deliverability (lesson 7). Now you’ll combine everything into an executable plan.
This lesson doesn’t introduce new concepts. It integrates everything into a 90-day system with specific actions for each week.
Pre-Launch: Week 0 (Before Day 1)
Complete this checklist before sending anything:
| Task | Time | Lesson Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Choose your platform (Beehiiv, Kit, or Substack) | 30 min | Lesson 2 |
| Set up custom domain and email authentication | 1 hour | Lesson 2 |
| Write your welcome email | 30 min | Lesson 2 |
| Define 3-5 content pillars | 20 min | Lesson 2 |
| Create your voice guide | 30 min | Lesson 3 |
| Write 3 issues in advance | 3-4 hours | Lesson 3 |
| Create a lead magnet | 2 hours | Lesson 5 |
| Set up referral program (if on Beehiiv) | 30 min | Lesson 5 |
| Configure analytics tracking | 15 min | Lesson 7 |
Total pre-launch time: ~8-10 hours across 1-2 weeks.
✅ Quick Check: Why write 3 issues before launching? Because your first subscribers experience your newsletter at its most important moment — the beginning. Polished first issues establish quality expectations that keep subscribers engaged. Three pre-written issues also give you a buffer if life gets busy in your first week, ensuring consistency from the start.
Month 1: Establish and Grow (Days 1-30)
Primary goal: Consistent content + initial audience building.
Week 1: Launch
- Send your first issue to your existing network (personal email contacts, social followers)
- Announce on all social platforms with a clear value proposition
- Share your lead magnet
- Target: 50-100 subscribers
Week 2: Rhythm
- Send issue #2 on the same day and time as issue #1 (establishing cadence)
- Start repurposing newsletter content on 1-2 social platforms
- Ask early subscribers for feedback (reply to your email)
- Target: 100-200 subscribers
Week 3: Optimize
- Review your first open rates and click-through rates
- Write your first A/B test (subject line)
- Reach out to 2-3 potential cross-promotion partners
- Target: 200-300 subscribers
Week 4: Assess
- Review Month 1 metrics: open rate, CTR, growth rate, unsubscribe rate
- Identify your strongest content type (which issue got the best engagement?)
- Plan Month 2 content based on data
- Target: 300-500 subscribers
Month 2: Grow and Start Monetizing (Days 31-60)
Primary goal: Accelerate growth + introduce first revenue stream.
Week 5-6: Growth Push
- Launch your first cross-promotion
- Start a content distribution routine: repurpose every issue on 2 platforms
- Activate referral program with rewards
- Add 2-3 affiliate links for products you genuinely use and recommend
Week 7-8: First Revenue
- Create an advertiser info page with your newsletter metrics
- Reach out to 5 niche-relevant brands for small sponsorship opportunities
- Review affiliate performance — which links are getting clicks?
- Plan your paid tier or digital product based on subscriber questions
Month 2 targets:
- 500-1,000 subscribers
- First affiliate revenue
- First sponsorship conversation
- 40%+ open rate maintained
Month 3: Scale and Diversify (Days 61-90)
Primary goal: Consistent revenue + sustainable growth system.
Week 9-10: Revenue Scaling
- Secure first paid sponsorship
- Launch paid subscription tier (if your content supports it)
- Create first digital product based on subscriber needs
Week 11-12: Systems
- Document your complete workflow (research → write → test → send)
- Set up your weekly performance review dashboard
- Plan next quarter’s content calendar
- Evaluate: Should you increase frequency? Add a second newsletter? Double down on what’s working?
Month 3 targets:
- 1,000+ subscribers
- 2-3 active revenue streams
- Sustainable production workflow (under 4 hours/week)
- Clear understanding of what your audience values most
✅ Quick Check: Why does the 90-day plan focus on systems by Month 3 instead of pure growth? Because growth without systems collapses. If you double your subscribers but don’t have a documented workflow, you’ll burn out. Month 3 is about making your newsletter sustainable: reliable production process, consistent revenue, and a growth engine that works without constant manual effort.
Your Complete Newsletter Reference
| Component | Key Principle |
|---|---|
| Platform | Beehiiv for media, Kit for products, Substack for writing |
| Authentication | SPF + DKIM + DMARC = 2.7x inbox placement |
| Welcome email | 60-80% open rate; deliver value immediately |
| Content workflow | AI research → AI outline → your draft → AI polish |
| Voice guide | Include in every AI prompt for consistency |
| Subject lines | 30-50 chars; curiosity gap formula; A/B test weekly |
| Growth | Referrals ($0.17/sub) + lead magnets + cross-promotions |
| Monetization | Affiliates (day 1) → sponsorships (1K subs) → paid tier (5K subs) |
| Analytics | Deliverability → opens → clicks → replies → unsubscribes |
| List hygiene | Remove 90-day inactive; re-engage before removing |
Build Your Plan Now
Create my personalized 90-day newsletter launch plan:
My newsletter topic: [niche/subject]
My target audience: [who they are, what they need]
My unique angle: [what makes my perspective different]
My platform choice: [Beehiiv/Kit/Substack]
My available time per week: [hours for newsletter work]
My existing audience: [social followers, email contacts, etc.]
My monetization goal: [first dollar? replace income? side income?]
Generate:
1. Pre-launch checklist with specific deadlines
2. Week-by-week action plan for 12 weeks
3. Content calendar for the first 8 issues (topic + format + subject line ideas)
4. Growth strategy prioritized by my starting audience size
5. Monetization timeline based on realistic subscriber growth
6. Lead magnet concept tailored to my niche
7. Voice guide template pre-filled based on my topic
The One Thing That Matters Most
Every lesson in this course gives you a specific skill. But the skill that matters most isn’t writing, or subject lines, or growth tactics. It’s consistency.
The newsletters that succeed send every week. The ones that fail send for three weeks and then disappear for a month.
Your first issue won’t be your best. Your tenth will be better. Your fiftieth will be better still. The only way to get there is to keep sending.
Key Takeaways
- Complete the pre-launch checklist before Day 1: platform, authentication, welcome email, voice guide, 3 pre-written issues, lead magnet
- Month 1: establish consistency and initial growth (target 300-500 subscribers)
- Month 2: accelerate growth and introduce affiliate revenue
- Month 3: add sponsorships, create systems, and build sustainability
- Document your workflow by Month 3 so your newsletter runs on a system, not willpower
- Consistency beats perfection — send every week, improve every issue, and compound over time
Your platform is ready. Your workflow is defined. Your growth strategy is planned. Now send your first issue.
Knowledge Check
Complete the quiz above first
Lesson completed!